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| Kenya urges AU to suspend Mugabe | Kenya urges AU to suspend Mugabe |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga has urged the African Union to suspend Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe until he allows free and fair elections. | |
| The call came as Zimbabwe's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) opposition said the country faced a constitutional crisis. | |
| The situation in Zimbabwe overshadowed the African Union summit in Egypt. | |
| Correspondents say the AU's response to the crisis will be a major test of the bloc's effectiveness. | |
| Mr Mugabe claimed a landslide victory as the sole candidate in the presidential election re-run after the MDC's leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, withdrew. | |
| I would expect them to have very, very strong words for [Mr Mugabe] Jendayi Frazer US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa African leaders' discomfortZimbabwe: Possible scenariosInside Mugabe's mind | |
| But African observers said the election had been undermined by pre-poll violence. | |
| Speaking to reporters in Nairobi, Mr Odinga said: "They should suspend him and send peace forces to Zimbabwe to ensure free and fair elections." | Speaking to reporters in Nairobi, Mr Odinga said: "They should suspend him and send peace forces to Zimbabwe to ensure free and fair elections." |
| Mr Odinga, a vocal critic of Mr Mugabe, says the AU would set a dangerous precedent by accepting him as "a duly elected president". | Mr Odinga, a vocal critic of Mr Mugabe, says the AU would set a dangerous precedent by accepting him as "a duly elected president". |
| The UN has urged African leaders to try to negotiate a solution to the Zimbabwe's crisis. | |
| Some analysts have pointed to Kenya as an example of how it could be resolved. | |
| Mr Odinga was named prime minister as part of a power-sharing deal to end political violence in which some 1,500 people were killed, many in ethnic clashes. | |
| No talks | |
| The MDC says the way forward in Zimbabwe must reflect the outcome of the first round of voting in March, when Mr Tsvangirai won more votes than President Mugabe. | |
ZIMBABWE AND ITS NEIGHBOURS | |
| Zimbabwe's opposition wants neighbouring countries to persuadeRobert Mugabe to step down. So how are relations changing? | |
| South Africa's Thabo Mbeki is the key mediator. He has not criticisedRobert Mugabe, despite pressure from the ruling ANC. | |
| Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa has taken the toughest line. He'scalled Zimbabwe a "regional embarrassment". | |
| Angola's President Jose Eduardo dos Santos is one of Robert Mugabe's closest allies. He has urged Mr Mugabe to end the violence. | |
| Botswana has summoned a Zimbabwean envoy to complain about theviolence. It has supported Zimbabwe's opposition. | |
| Namibia is an ally of Robert Mugabe. It wants to re-distribute white-owned farms to black villagers. It has not criticised the violence. | |
| Mozambique has hosted some white farmers forced out of Zimbabwe when their land was seized. It is seen as sympathetic to the opposition. | |
| Tanzania's ruling party has a history of backing Robert Mugabe'sZanu-PF party. Its foreign minister has condemned the violence. | |
| DR Congo's President Joseph Kabila is an ally of Robert Mugabe whosent troops to help his father, Laurent Kabila, fight rebels. | |
| Malawi is seen as neutral. But 3m people from Malawi are in Zimbabweand many were badly hit by the farm invasions. | |
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| The opposition is prepared to take part in a transitional arrangement or a government of national unity, but it says there are no negotiations currently under way between Mr Tsvangirai and the ruling Zanu-PF party. | |
| The MDC is asking the AU to appoint three eminent African envoys to work full time on the crisis. | |
| Few African leaders have spoken out about the election result while AU discussions continue. | |
| The South African presidency said it would consider reports from election observers together with other members of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) before adopting a unified position regarding the result. | The South African presidency said it would consider reports from election observers together with other members of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) before adopting a unified position regarding the result. |
| President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, the African Union chairman, pointedly congratulated the people of Zimbabwe over the election, but not Mr Mugabe himself. | |
| Africa's longest serving leader, Gabon President Omar Bongo, has given the strongest suggestion of recognising Mr Mugabe as president, saying "he was elected, he took an oath, and he is here with us, so he is president". | |
| US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Jendayi Frazer said she expected African leaders to take a harder line with Mr Mugabe behind closed doors. | |
| "I would suggest not to take the soft words of the opening plenary as a reflection of the deep concern of the leaders here for the situation in Zimbabwe," she said. | |
| "I would expect them to have very, very strong words for him." | |
| The BBC's southern Africa correspondent Peter Biles says that apart from the recent political violence in Zimbabwe, there is continuing economic hardship, with inflation in the region of nine million per cent and the country heading for the worst harvest in 60 years. |